And You Are?
by Radiance Within
Summary: Ranawa Ikeda has developed a one-sided rivalry with Yanagi Renji over the years of knowing him. When he mistakenly loses the prized writing piece she had written, and offers to aid her in finding it - will Ranawa realize a rivalry isn't all she has been developing for Yanagi?
1. Chapter 1: Toying With Fate

**Summary: **Renji Yanagi found a beautiful piece of literature lying about the school library and was quite certain that it was purely student-made. He does not recognize the handwriting of the person while Ranawa Ikeda searches tirelessly for that creative writing piece she had to finish. Are the fates toying the feelings of the two most logical students in Rikkaidai Fuzoku Chuu?

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Prince of Tennis characters.

* * *

"And thus, we looked onto the everlasting sky in whose hand held the strings of our fate and intertwined the faces of the world beyond. Dusk had turned into dawn and I looked up to see the new dawn that I had deemed impossible. The sun, like a jewel of the galaxy itself, glowed with a different shine. It greeted the inhabitants of my awakening land with a simple cheery radiance and it simply took the breathe out of me. A cool wind blew past me and I turned, knowing that the ending was just a complex beginning that was slowly unfolding."

Yanagi Renji, the Dataman of Rikkaidai Fuzoku Chuu could not help but marvel at the magnificent display of writing he had just read. He was simply looking for an encyclopedia and accidentally came upon this breathtaking piece of literature. There was no name and he could not recognize the handwriting of the author, but with one look at the texture of the paper, Yanagi knew that it had to a student of Rikkai.

The handwriting looked feminine; maybe his fangirls had made it themselves and had planned for him to read it. He shook his head, gripping the piece of paper even more tightly. No, his fangirls weren't idiots but they just weren't capable of writing something ingenious like this. Unknown to the Dataman however, as he assessed and analyzed the piece of paper, a tall dark-haired girl was searching frantically for a creative writing piece she had to finish.

Ikeda Ranawa had been in the school library, completely at peace when her friend, Hayashi Naomi had disturbed her. Naomi, absent-minded that she was, had forgotten where she had put her important book report papers and knowing that Ranawa kept track of their group's school papers, she had called her obviously annoyed friend.

After thirty-minutes of desperately trying to find the papers, Naomi suddenly remembered that she had given it to her best friend Shiho for safe-keeping. She had furiously apologized to the already irritated Ranawa, who stomped back to the library to finish her story. Ranawa remembered exactly where she had left her paper, but became frustrated when it was not there. Unknown to her, Yanagi Renji had found her piece and began reading it while walking through the gigantic library.

Ranawa began searching shelf-to-shelf while Yanagi placed the paper in his bag carefully, so that he or any other of his teammates would accidentally ruin it. After ten agonizing minutes, Ranawa was about to give up her search when she nearly bumps into the leaving Renji. He looked just as surprised as girl, although his eyes did not open.

"Oh. Um. Sorry." Ranawa knew who Renji was; he had high rankings in the school grading score. Not wanting to speak to anybody (afraid that she might burst of anger), especially to Yanagi Renji, Ranawa quickly fled to another shelve leaving the tall tennis player confused. Finally he came to the conclusion that she had just wanted some peace and quiet from the noise of Rikkaidai and left hurriedly when he realized that he might be late to practice. No, she was a frantic teenage girl who is clearly not capable of writing the piece in his bag.

As Ranawa placed the back of her head onto the wooden shelf, she grunted, "Ugh." She had searched everywhere in the library; how could she not have found it? Then a thought ran through her mind: Did Yanagi Renji take it? Then, Ranawa chuckled mindlessly to herself. Sure, he was friends with the trickster Niou, the self-centered Marui, the childish Kirihara, or even the unpredictable Yukimura - but he was the Dataman. There was absolutely no way he could have found the paper and not have concluded that she was the writer.

She blinked. Maybe somebody else came in and they had taken it. Yes, that was it. The only reasonable thing for her to do was to create a new story and forget about her old one - it was impossible to find her paper now. Ranawa nodded to herself and left the library slowly. As she was about to close the door, she reluctantly turned around, hoping to find her paper but it was nowhere to be found.

The girl merely sighed as she brushed her long wavy black locks of her hair and trudged back home feeling completely devastated.

* * *

"That sure is one nice piece of literature." Marui goggled at the piece of paper that he, Niou, and Kirihara had found inside Yanagi's unprotected bag. Kirihara, who was quite confused, nodded absentmindedly. Yanagi, Sanada, and Yagyuu were creating new tactics that was to be used by the team until Yukimura returned and the trio of trouble-makers couldn't help but search through the nearest bag.

"It doesn't seem like Yanagi's style of writing nor is it his handwriting." Niou looked coolly over at the paper, as Marui's eyes began darting through the paper one more time.

Kirihara looked up at his sempai. "Then whose is it?" He asked curiously.

Before any of his sempais could answer, Sanada had saw them in his peripheral vision and yelled loudly for all three to an agonizing run of specifically fifty laps. As Yanagi shook his head in disapproval at the running three, the paper he held in his hand took the attention of the remaining three of the team - Sanada, Yaguu, and Jackal.

"So, whose is that, Yanagi-kun?" Yagyuu adjusted his glasses, questioning the Data Master.

Yanagi took another look at the writing and honestly answered, "I don't know."

The three looked to him in various kinds of shock. It didn't seem predictable that Yanagi Renji, yes, **THE** Yanagi Renji did not know something. Quite honestly, it was more to the point that he did not want to know. Whoever had written this was better off anonymous, a mystery for him to never unravel.

Yes, he will let somebody else find the author and won't be bothered with it. He had no time to find the writer - his main goal and focus was to keep the team at a winning rate until Yukimura heals and takes over. But deep inside, behind the passion for tennis, logical thinking, and head-focused actions, Yanagi Renji couldn't help but look at the piece of paper and think, _"And you are?"_


	2. Chapter 2: Stubborn

**Summary: **Renji Yanagi found a beautiful piece of literature lying about the school library and was quite certain that it was purely student-made. He does not recognize the handwriting of the person while Ranawa Ikeda searches tirelessly for that creative writing piece she had to finish. Are the fates toying the feelings of the two most logical students in Rikkaidai Fuzoku Chuu?

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Prince of Tennis characters.

This chapter is for the following users who have alerted this story: **applegreentea, celtic27fionn, Coco96, Hidden in Sunlight, Ice-creamy-life, Miss CatLover Chii, Narunette, NothingNEverything, Oluhasuu, Princess Alice Rose, rebirthreborn, sable2684, totoronii,** and** xxxVampy-chanxxx**.

This story is for the following users who have favorited this story: **celtic27fionn, NEVERYUNNIE, Princess Alice Rose, Raine Amorial, thesadisttensaifuji, **and **XKawaii-Neko-ChanX**.

* * *

Ranawa disliked it when something fazed her, when something throws her off-track from her initial path. She disliked it when her calculations goes wrong, and her predictions are incorrect. Ranawa liked being right. And she knew that despite what her friends convincingly told her, the thought her paper being at the hands of another left her restless.

A head-driven determination pushed Ranawa home in such a frantic speed that her friends wouldn't have known it was her from behind. But by the time the teenage girl sat herself down on her chair, took out a clean fresh piece of paper, and a mechanical pencil - her determination was gone.

She racked her brains, trying to remember how the words flowed but only the key words found themselves back to her. Ranawa leaned back on her chair and in frustration, tossed her head back and her eyes meet her cerulean blue ceiling.

"What was it...Everlasting sky...Dawn...intertwined..." She mumbled softly, her fingers in a tight grip around the pencil and tapping it in a constant beat.

Ranawa reached for her phone, but thought better of it. She sighed as she looked down at the empty wordless piece of paper. It glared at her, like it dared for her to push her pencil down and write words, just to fill it's sad vacancy.

"This is ridiculous." She snapped as she bent down to reach out for her phone and speed-dialed Kiseki who picked up after the first ring. Ranawa had predicted so.

Kiseki answered firmly, "Ranawa, I don't have your creative writing piece."

"Don't you remember how it went?" Desperation grew in Ranawa's voice as she restlessly paced back and forth down her room.

From the other line, Ranawa could hear Kiseki sigh. "Barely. Why don't you try writing a new story?"

"Because I can't get this one out of my mind. It's the best one so far and I'm not letting it go so easily." Ranawa replied, her tone as solid as a boulder.

Kiseki let a longer sigh. "Fine. Let's narrow the situation down. Who else was in the library with you before you left?"

"Yanagi Renji. But anyone could have came in, took a look at it, and took it to use for their own selfish purposes." Ranawa answered, running a hand through her long wavy hair.

Ranawa could already imagine Kiseki rolling her eyes. "Then why don't you ask Yanagi-san? Surely, if he did take it not knowing whose owner it was, he would give it back with no hesitation."

"Kiseki, you honestly think Yanagi Renji took my paper? Why would he take it in the first place? He's capable of writing better." Ranawa cried out on the phone, and she could see Kiseki wincing.

Her friend took a pause. "It wouldn't hurt to ask, Nawa. He's your best bet. If you want your paper so bad you're going to have to ask him."

"Alright, fine. I'll ask him tomorrow." Ranawa mumbled, convincing herself that she was definitely **not** going to ask Yanagi for her paper. What if he didn't steal it? She would be making a false accusation at the Dataman. She wouldn't dare challenge the highest-ranking student of Rikkaidai.

No. As Kiseki muttered a quick goodbye, Ranawa clenched her phone in her fist. She would not. She would sit her butt down and start writing a better story than she had before. But midway through taking the pencil in her hands and settling it on the paper, Ranawa tossed her head back again and let out a huge frustrating, "Ugh..."

Knowing that spending too much time worrying about her creative writing piece would eventually lead her to not concentrate with her other schoolwork, Ranawa abandoned the project temporarily and instead shifted to Math. It did not take long for her to solve the algebraic problems, and it took even faster for her to finish her Biology Cornell Notes that weren't due until Friday.

By the time she finished all of her homework, it was only 5 o'clock and the sun still had not set. Looking out her newly-cleaned window which she (with great reluctance) had to clean over her weekend, Ranawa sighed and looked back at her empty piece of paper.

Yearning for some hopeless inspiration, Ranawa slipped off her uniform and opened her closet slowly. She stared at the weather outside and settled for dark skinny jeans, a dark tee, and a plaid blazer just in case the temperature gradually got lower (which she predicted would happen). She swung a small purse around her shoulders.

Ranawa grabbed a notepad and a clip-on pen, as well as her house keys and her cellphone before gently closing her bedroom door behind her.

"Onii-san, I'm heading out for a bit." She called out near his slightly-ajar bedroom and she was answered by a low "uh-huh..."

Ranawa clambered downstairs and was met by the sight of her eight year old sister covered in cookie dough. The older sister shifted her eyes from the baking pan to the messy elementary-schooler in front of her.

"Should I even ask...?" Ranawa asked reluctantly. Her sister shook her head and chunks of dough splattered Ranawa's shirt and jeans. At the sight of the blotching dough on her older sister's clothing, Yumiko could not suppress her impending giggle.

Ranawa merely rolled her eyes and sighed as she carefully wiped it away with a sheet of tissue paper. "Miko, next time if you need help, ask for it." She stated as she tied her shoelaces in a hurry.

"Bye!" Her sister called out as the door slammed behind Ranawa.

Ranawa sighed and scratched the back of her head. Her family was an eccentric group of people. Her brother spends more time with his music rather than with his own family. Her sister was a mindless sports zombie whose world have not revolved in anything other than volleyball until she "fell in love" with a 9th grader just a mere month ago. Her father was a practiced veterinarian. Her mother was a busy newspaper editor.

And Ranawa? She couldn't confidently described herself. She was many things, but she was definitely not a musician, nor an athlete, nor an animal-lover, and definitely not a journalist. Ranawa couldn't even simplify her best interests. Yes, she was a brilliant student - many have told her before. Yes, she was rational and mature for her young age - many have agreed.

But as she kicked a pebble out of her way, Ranawa racked her brains. If she was smart, brilliant, rational, and mature - did that make her a genius? Surely not. Geniuses were born with a natural talent. Ranawa gained her calculative personality through sheer will.

She stopped at the cross-ways and pushed the button, waiting for the green signal. Ranawa fiddled with her purse lightly and briskly walked as the lights turned green and towards the local park. As soon as she arrived, the smell of fresh spring leaves and the sounds of cheery laughter calmly soothed her.

Ranawa sat herself down on the bench and readied her notepad and pen.

"Nawa? This is a surprise." A familiar voice said, and Ranawa looked up to see a panting Shoko in running shoes and gym shorts.

Ranawa stood up. "I needed some inspiration for my creative writing piece."

"Kiseki mentioned that. You still couldn't find the original story?" Shoko placed her hands on her hips as she faced her friend.

Ranawa smiled stonily. "I've tried. Kiseki believes Yanagi Renji might have taken it by accident." She mused in a joking tone.

"Kiseki might be right." Shoko replied, as the two started walking around the perimeter.

Ranawa shrugged her shoulders. "And if she isn't?"

"Well, what do you have to lose?" Shoko shrugged back at her, then crossed her arms as a strong breeze came through the park pathway.

Ranawa paused. "Dignity?"

"I didn't know you were this self-conscious." Shoko told her friend, raising an eyebrow at her statement.

Ranawa brushed the comment away. "I wouldn't call myself that."

"Of course you wouldn't." Shoko chuckled as they neared a corner which turned towards the central part of the park.

Ranawa grinned. "Maybe if I just forgot about the piece that I lost, I could write a better one."

"Good luck with that. It's the best you've written." Shoko grinned back, stretching her arms.

Ranawa sighed. "Not to sound arrogant, but yes. It was the best one."

"Well, Nawa - let me know if you find it. I gotta run, okay?" Shoko said, jogging in place.

Ranawa smiled. "Alright. See you tomorrow."

"You too." Shoko raised a hand in the air, as she started rounding the corner and disappeared from view.

* * *

It had been a painful excruciating hour since Ranawa arrived, and yet no inspiration came upon her. No matter how much she smelled the flowers, felt the leaves, admired the tall aging trees - there was absolutely nothing. She was more frustrated with herself more than anybody.

After all, it was she who lost her precious piece. If only she had taken it with her when Naomi called, she wouldn't have had to bother walking to the park and peeving herself at her lack of creativity.

She ran a hand through her hair and walked back to where she came from, looking down at her notepad. As she was not looking up, she inevitably collided into a frustrated Kirihara who was escorted by his 9th grade teammates: Jackal Kuwahara and Yanagi Renji.

"Gomenasai." Ranawa immediately inclined her head as she pocketed her pen and her notepad in one inhumane swift motion.

Kirihara looked up at the tall girl and scowled. She couldn't help noticing that his eyes were a blood red. "Watch where you're going!" He yelled out at her.

"Excuse me?" She answered coldly, crossing her arms. She at least apologized. Could a better be any more rude?

Kuwahara held his junior back as he gave her an apologetic grin. "I'm sorry, he's in a bad mood right now." He smacked Kirihara at the back of the head, who in turned, gave him a cold glare.

"I apologize for his rudeness." Yanagi bowed his head politely. But Ranawa was already furious. She was in quite a bad mood already and the seaweed-haired little boy merely fueled the fire that had already ignited hours ago.

She held her chin up, and answered coldly, "So this is how you run your prodigious tennis club." Ranawa smirked as she passed them and shook her head in anger. In her great exasperation, she had completely forgotten what Kiseki and Shoko had told her to do.

But as she pressed the street-light button in annoyance, the thought merely passed by her head and did not come back.

"I just have to forget that piece. Just start over, and make a new one." Ranawa ran a hand through her long dark hair and hugged herself as a cold chill breezed through her. She walked home, determined to write and write and write.

* * *

"I don't know, Nawa. It's a bit..." Tanaka didn't know how to respond as she let Ranawa's newly written piece fall out of her hold and onto the desk.

Ranawa frowned. "A bit what?"

"Rushed." Kiseki stated, softly tracing the hand-written words with her long slender piano fingers.

Ranawa's frowned deepened. "It's a bit spur-of-the-moment, yes. But it's good enough, right?"

"Compared to the other one - this one downright stinks." Tanaka sat down and bluntly told her disappointed friend. Kiseki shoved her in a non-harmful yet physical way.

Ranawa took a seat. "I know, I just - I just needed to write something. I felt the need to. What could stop an artist's spontaneity?"

"Her rational mind." Kiseki flatly stated, raising an eyebrow and crossing her arms at her fellow 9th grader.

Ranawa scowled and snatched her paper back from Tanaka's desk. She read over the paragraph slowly.

_I was left in a cold, abysmal nothingness. I felt for something, someone - to let me know I was not alone. Yet my heart continued it's steady pounding as I realized, I was alone. Clouds of confusion and a dark fog of anxiety ran through me. I was frightened, angry, and helpless. What was I do? I laid down on the ground, and closed my eyes - hoping that the darkness would disappear and light would soon take it's place. But it merely haunted and haunted and haunted me even more. And a feeling wrenched through my gut - a feeling I could not name._

She slapped it down on her own desk and sighed. "I know, it's horrible. But what else am I supposed to do? Tear down the school for my creative writing piece?"

"Why don't you start with the initial suspect?" Tanaka muttered under her breath, and gestured towards Yanagi Renji who was speaking with Marui Bunta, Niou Masaharu, Jackal Kuwahara, and Yagyuu Hiroshi outside the classroom door.

Ranawa crossed her arms. "I will not."

* * *

Alright, not very long - but not too short either. Thanks for all the support again. I love you guys! :)

x x RadianceWithin x x


	3. Chapter 3: Heartbeat

**Summary: **Renji Yanagi found a beautiful piece of literature lying about the school library and was quite certain that it was purely student-made. He does not recognize the handwriting of the person while Ranawa Ikeda searches tirelessly for that creative writing piece she had to finish. Are the fates toying the feelings of the two most logical students in Rikkaidai Fuzoku Chuu?

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Prince of Tennis characters.

This chapter is for the following users who have alerted this story: **applegreentea, celtic27fionn, Coco96, Happy-Valley, Hidden in Sunlight, Ice-creamy-life, Miss CatLover Chii, MoonlitNite, Narunette, NothingNEverything, Oluhasuu, Princess Alice Rose, rebirthreborn, RIn136, sable2684, totoronii, xXRandomnessPrevailsXx,** and** xxxVampy-chanxxx**.

This story is for the following users who have favorited this story: **celtic27fionn, Chillybean, hannonmm, Just Wait and See, NEVERYUNNIE, Princess Alice Rose, Raine Amorial, Rin136, strawbewii, thesadisttensaifuji, **and **XKawaii-Neko-ChanX**.

* * *

"And therefore, 'you're' is merely a contraction of the words, you and are. It's easily confused with 'your' but there is a difference between these two similar words. Understood?" The teacher marked a dot near the apostrophe of "you're" before setting down her marker as the bell signaled the end of class.

Ranawa closed her notebook and placed it carefully inside her backpack, seeing her red creative writing notebook and tapping it absentmindedly with her fingers. A snarky chuckle sounded from behind her and the dark-haired teen turned to see Tanaka tapping her foot impatiently near the foot of her desk.

"What - you think the words will magically come back?" Tanaka raised an eyebrow, and gestured towards the door just a few feet from where the tennis regulars were conversing in hushed tones. Sanada stood with a stoic expression as he and Yanagi silently watched Jackal, Marui, and Kirihara bicker. Niou snickered next to a reading Yagyuu who seemed to not care.

Ranawa narrowed her eyes at her. "Don't be stupid." She took the strap of her backpack and swung it over her shoulder as she stood from her desk and from the corner of her eye, saw Kiseki giving her a sharp look. Konomi seemed to be avoiding her stare.

"Y'know, Nawa - pride is a heavy burden to carry," Tanaka told her, "And sometimes - a burden's all that it is, a burden." Her arms crossed, trapping some of her brown hair in between.

Ranawa had stepped a few feet ahead of her. Most of their classmates her happily left the room. It was eerily silent, empty, and lifeless. The regulars had already left from their previous spot in the hallway - presumably heading to practice.

"Thanks for telling me something I already knew." Her cold voice echoed through the walls as she quickly fled towards the stairs. She didn't spare a single glance towards Kiseki, Tanaka, or Konomi.

* * *

Ranawa sped down the stairs, in a speed she knew she was usually incapable of going, and nearly ran into a Yanagi Renji surrounded by giggling fan girls.

"Ne, ne, Yanagi-kun - are you free today? We should go somewhere together!" Ranawa immediately recognized one of the girls as Konomi's former friend, Chikako who had previously been infatuated with Yagyuu Hiroshi.

"_Maybe she has something for intelligent tennis players..."_ Ranawa mused, as she watched Chikako disappointingly turn away, obviously rejected.

A cacophony of chirpy voices began aggressively shouting out for his affections. "Pick me then, Yanagi-kun!" "If not her, why not me?" "What about me, Yanagi-kun?" were mere examples. Ranawa smirked as she rolled her eyes and went ahead of them, turning towards the stairs heading up to the rooftop gardens. Half-way up, she glanced back down - wondering if she should actually take Tanaka's advice.

But Yanagi was too engrossed with his extremely aggressive fangirls who seemed to be exploding with the want to be noticed by him and his facial expression was enough to say that he was already irritated. Having some random girl accuse him of stealing an irrelevant writing piece would further provoke his impatience.

Ranawa shook her head in disbelief, wondering why the thought even bothered to cross her mind. She bounded up the stairs and took in the fresh scent of the rooftop gardens. She set her bag down and sighed.

"What to do..." She bit her lip and closed her eyes. Ranawa laid there on the bench, immersed in peace.

* * *

_"Test results have been posted!" A shriek sounded. It was the early morning a couple of days prior to testing during Ranawa's 4th year in primary school. She jolted up, anxious and excited at the same time. She glanced over her fated rival, Yanagi Renji who was coolly brushing past the many students seemingly careless. Ranawa fixed her hair and imitated him as she pushed her way through the crowd._

_The test results board did not show scores, only people's names and their ranking. Ranawa couldn't hold her excitement in. She shoved past people and grinning, stared up the board only to be met by a sad sight._

**_4th Year Ranking_**

**_Yanagi Renji - No. 1 ranking_**

**_Ikeda Ranawa - No. 2 ranking_**

_Many rushed over to congratulate Yanagi who thanked them stoically while Ranawa's friends cheered her on for getting 2nd. But 2nd wasn't what she wanted. She wanted 1st. Ever since the first year when she met Renji, it had been her ambition to best him. But it had always been him who always got to where she wanted to be._

_He was the first of her year to successfully hang through the monkey bars in the playground. He was the first of her year to get a scented sticker from the teacher. He was the first of her year to do this and do that. And for a time, Ranawa began to lose hope. But it never completely faded away. _

_For every test, every challenge - it was her ambition to be 1st. So when she heard Yanagi had taken up tennis, she immediately found herself playing it as well. But her dreams crashed to oblivion when Yanagi beat her 6-0 over and over and over again. Ranawa tucked away her racket. She hasn't touched it since._

_And ever since 1st year up to 9th - it had remained the same. Renji was always 1st, with Ranawa coming in at 2nd. Always. But never had he straight up go to her face and show off his success and achievements. Ranawa always wondered if it was because he had never bothered to know the girl who always came second to him._

* * *

"Nawa-nee-chan?" A familiar voice asked timidly.

Ranawa's eyes flew open and she shot forward then turned to Aeha who was reluctantly stepping towards her direction, both hands clutching her book bag. The older teen stared down at the floor. Surely, Kiseki, Tanaka, and even Konomi would've told her what had happened after class.

"Aeha? What brings you here?"

The sophomore brushed her auburn side-bangs from her face and sat down next to Ranawa who had sat straight up. She twirled her long wavy tresses and sighed. "You know why." Aeha answered simply.

"Did your sister make you come here? Or Shoko?" Ranawa asked curiously.

Aeha shook her head. "This writing piece. It's really important to you, isn't it?"

"More than you can understand." Ranawa sighed deeply, staring into space.

Aeha nodded. "Pride...is a heavy thing to carry. And sometimes we have to let go of it to bring out what's best in ourselves." She looked at the older teen who smiled at the nostalgia of the words. "Nawa-nee-chan, what's more important right now?"

"Yanagi is a person I will not be able to easily approach." Ranawa told her junior, running a hand through her slightly curly dark hair.

Aeha smiled. "I really don't understand. But it seems to me - you're making a big deal out of nothing." She gave Ranawa a knowing look in which the senior gave her a wide smile.

"Trust you to say something like that so bluntly." Ranawa rolled her eyes, shoving Aeha playfully as she stood up, taking her bag with her. "Thank you." She added, smiling a closed smile.

Aeha grinned. "No worries." She watched silently as Ranawa clambered back down the stairs, headed towards the library.

"Chances like these only come once in a while. If you don't take it - you miss it. Don't let it go to waste, Nawa-nee-chan." Aeha mused to herself, her fingers spreading towards an unfinished drawing. She smiled and looked up at the sky. "Don't waste it."

* * *

Ranawa found herself running into the devil himself. She was barely a few yards away from the library entrance when he exited it. She gulped and took a deep breath in. She couldn't have anything to lose.

"Yanagi-san?" Ranawa called out, gripping the strap of her bag firmly as if it was her only rope to reality.

The tall 9th grader turned towards her, an eyebrow raised. "Ah. Ikeda-san, am I correct?" Yanagi calmly asked although he knew the answer already. Ranawa coolly ignored the vein popping from her forehead; of course, all those years of coming second to him - he never took note of her apparent existence.

"Yes. Sorry to bother you, but by any chance - have you found or read a creative writing piece in the library give or take a couple of days ago, just around this time?" She asked him, resisting the urge to turn tail and run. A pregnant silence ensued after her question and Ranawa wondered if he was going to answer at all.

Yanagi crossed his arms and responded, "I actually have, yes."

"It is mine." Ranawa told him simply.

His eyes opened and his mouth pursed. "Funny. Someone had already claimed ownership over it a day ago."

"Who?" Ranawa's eyes widened this time, her voices tainted with disbelief and disdain.

Yanagi sighed. "I didn't recognize them but I made sure that it truly belonged to them."

"How?" Ranawa raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms.

Yanagi's eyes closed again. "I told them to repeat phrases from the piece. They did so accordingly, and so I gave back the piece to them."

Ranawa ran a hand through her hair, trying hard not to cry. Her precious piece - the one that she worked so incredibly hard on - had been stolen by some thief that even Rikkai's renowned master did not recognize. "This honestly cannot be happening to me." She murmured under her breath, looking away.

"Ikeda-san, I may offer information I remember from them, if you wish." Yanagi told her, calmly standing next to frustrated girl.

Ranawa looked at him and forgetting her place, took both of his hands and pleaded, "Please tell me! You have no idea how much that piece means to me! I can't have it be stolen like this and just let it go - please tell me!" Yanagi cleared his throat and gestured towards his captured hands and she immediately let go.

"Extremely frizzy red hair. Green eyes, the color of grass. 5 feet and 3 inches. They were wearing a Rikkai uniform, but I've never met nor seen them before." Yanagi patted his hands on his trousers, as if to remove the dirt that Ranawa's hands had brought to his own. She held back the urge to curl her lip and throw out a snarky comment at his arrogant face.

Ranawa bit her lip and mused, "I've never seen anybody of that description around here before." She resisted to add, "Are you sure you recall this person correctly?" and hurt his precious egotistically photographic memory.

"Well, neither have I. If that is all." Yanagi nodded and turned to leave. Ranawa stood there, helpless and frustrated. If only she could re-write a better piece, but she knew that her creativity was spontaneous; here a second and gone the next. She looked up at the heavens, expecting some sort of sign.

Ranawa turned towards Yanagi and called out, "Yanagi-san?"

He turned towards her.

"Thank you."

Yanagi turned away, hiding a faint smile that began instinctively appearing on his lips.

* * *

"Hana ga kaoru no wa, tori ga utau no wa~"(1) Ranawa looked down on her cellphone lying beside her red creative writing notebook. She glanced at the caller ID and clicked "send" as she let the phone rest between her shoulder and her ear.

Tanaka's sly voice sounded from the other end. "So, did Yanagi give your piece back to you?"

"Apparently, somebody else already took it." Ranawa mumbled and sighed, closing her notebook and lied down on the bed and stared up her aqua-blue colored ceiling.花が香るのは

Tanaka was silent for a moment. "Who?" She mused, seemingly amused at this turn of events. Ranawa scowled through the phone. Was Rikkai's Ice Princess so sadistic as to entertain herself over her own friend's misery? Surely not.

"Yanagi said he's never met the person before. He doesn't seem to recognize them at all." Ranawa sighed as the loud bass of her brother's newly-made music threatened to pump through her bedroom walls. The frustrated girl had every intention to break open his door and tell her music-obsessed brother to lower his so-called music down.

"Yanagi doesn't? Well, this is interesting, isn't it? Are you gonna hunt down the thief?" Tanaka wondered, the sound of her fingers tapping her desk loud enough to be overheard through the other end.

Ranawa ran her free hand through her hair; a habit she never did got over doing. "By the time I catch them, it'll be too late. I just need to focus on writing a new piece." She responded, wondering to herself if she would be capable of writing a good enough piece to earn herself a 90 or above.

"That's no fun, Nawa," Tanaka complained, "Here's an idea. You and Yanagi should team up and find the thief together. Come on - you're the geniuses of Rikkai, there's no way you won't catch them."

Ranawa rolled her eyes and chuckled, "Me working together with Yanagi is a big no-no, Tanaka. He's a solitary student, and so am I. It's just not possible."

"Ahh. So what Shoko does say is true." Tanaka slyly answered.

Ranawa's ears perked up. "And what may that be?"

"That you harbor feelings for Rikkai's Data Master." Tanaka replied simply.

Ranawa's mouth dropped open.

"So, it's true then?" Tanaka egged her on, smirking through the other line.

Ranawa's lips pursed. "I don't."

"What about that time you gave him chocolates for Valentine's Day?" Tanaka asked her.

Ranawa's lips pursed even more. "Shoko told you about that?"

"Who else?" A sing-songy tone of voice answered Ranawa and made her want to rip her hair out.

Ranawa sighed and tried to calm herself down before replying, "First of all - that was in 1st grade. Second - he was a foreigner, all the girls were fascinated about him. Third - THAT WAS IN FIRST GRADE, FOR GOODNESS' SAKE."

"They say first crushes last a lifetime." Tanaka mused, smirking.

Ranawa smirked. "Can you say the same for Niou?"

"When did this conversation become about me?" Tanaka narrowed her eyes.

Ranawa smiled. "See how I feel?"

"Ranawa, you're a she-demon." Tanaka sighed from the other line.

The said girl chuckled and said, "Well, taking this topic aside - what should my new piece be about?"

"You're just easily letting go of the old one?" Tanaka wondered.

Ranawa rolled her eyes. "Well, you mentioning it isn't exactly helping."

"Sorry, sorry. Listen, Nawa. I gotta go - my brother's calling me down for dinner. But you're a good enough writer. You'll figure something out. Remember Aeha's drawing? **La fiction dans les faits. **That should be a start, wouldn't it?" Tanaka suggested.

Ranawa blinked. "That's not such a bad idea." She searched through the room and her eyes found the drawing neatly pinned up on the wall. Her fingers lightly trailed down the drawing. It was an uncolored sketch of a student standing on top of the world, reaching for the stars. A smile slowly spread itself on her face.

"Yeah, well - after all the tormenting I've done, I figured I'd do something nice in return. See you tomorrow." Tanaka chuckled.

Ranawa laughed as well. "Ja ne."(2) She clicked end and stared back at the drawing.

"Every journey begins with a dream. Every dream begins with a wish. And with every wish, there lies a heart of a believer." Ranawa grinned and jumped up on her bed, excitedly squealing over her newly found inspiration.

* * *

"Her tale begins with a sudden burst of light tearing across the dull starless night. It was almost like a dream, so surreal it was impossible to believe. Her mouth gaped open with wonder, awestruck like a babe beginning it's life. Her arms crossed over her windowsill, her eyes never leaving that light, her heart never forgetting how it hard it beat when she first saw that streak of glowing wonder rip open her new-found dreams."

Ranawa's creative juices didn't stop flowing. During silent periods of note-taking, she would jot down phrases here and there on her red notebook. When the lunchtime bell rang, she immediately found herself sprinting towards the rooftops - not wanting her inspiration to stop so abruptly. Her friends only stared at her, but shrugged it off after Tanaka explained everything with a smirk.

Ranawa touched the black inked words with pride, a silly grin upon her face. She had finished two consistent pages decorated with flowy paragraphs. The smile couldn't disappear from her face.

"So you really are the writer of that piece." A familiar voice said, sounding a bit hesitant.

Ranawa turned to see Yanagi Renji with his usual facial expression, not seeming impressed at all.

"You almost sound skeptic." Ranawa chuckled, setting her pen down and sighing happily.

Yanagi took a seat next to her but did not turn to face her. "It seems you've found the one thing to best me at."

"So you do remember the girl who always placed second next to you." Ranawa mused, fidgeting slightly. She suddenly remembered her conversation with Tanaka the other night, and she fought hard to stop the blush slowly appearing on her face.

Yanagi crossed his arms and replied, "Well, a recurring name is hard to ignore."

"True enough." Ranawa responded.

Yanagi looked down. "You don't regret losing your old piece?"

"I regret it. It's the best I've written, this coming to a close second." Ranawa gestured towards her notebook. "It's best to not dwell in the past, otherwise you'll ruin the present. Logically speaking." She added, clearing her throat.

This time, Yanagi turned to look at her. "So your thinking...It's based on logic?"

"I used to think so. Actually a few days ago, I still did." Ranawa looked down and clasped her hands together. "But honestly - being a human being, it's impossible to only think through logic alone. Feelings are hard to ignore, and feelings can be a burden - but at the same time, it's what makes us who we are." She turned to look at Yanagi, whose eyebrows seemed to be raised.

"Of course, in the tennis court - it might be different. But I've been taught by the people around me that our worlds don't revolve based on one setting alone. So even if you think logically while playing tennis, it might be a bit different when you're not." Ranawa added, wondering if she was even making sense to the Data Master.

Yanagi cleared his throat. "That's...a way to think about it."

"I'm sorry. This is really strange. I should um...leave and let you - " Ranawa was starting to stand up and gather her things when Yanagi raised a hand. Unsure of what that meant, she froze and waited for him to say something.

He cleared his throat again and said, "It's alright. You can stay. It's just a bit foreign to me - speaking with a girl my age who's not..."

"A fangirl?" Ranawa let out a small hoot of laughter. "Yanagi-san, for you to be stereotyping...How do I say this?"

Yanagi raised an eyebrow. "Strange?"

"More like funny. You know - if you look at it from an outsider's view, fangirls may seem pathetic. Shallow. Ridiculous. But Ritsu Konomi, do you know her?" Ranawa saw him nod and moved on, "She told us once - they may seem like that, but they're not bad people. And who are we to judge, when we have flaws too." She mused, staring up at the clouds slowly moving through the sky.

Yanagi let out what seemed to be a some-what chuckle. "You, Ikeda Ranawa, are unlike any girl I've ever met."

And for a moment, Ranawa felt like her heart had stopped beating.

* * *

(1) These are the opening refrain lyrics from Shoujo Jidai's "Born to be A Lady"

(2) "See ya!"

**Hey! Happy New Year to everybody! So I hit writer's block since the start of school and never actually found the will to write anything for a while. I had completely forgotten about the chapter plans that I had written a while back for every story I currently have up. Well, I recently found the notebook a couple of weeks ago and started writing this chapter a week back. Hopefully the writer's block didn't make my writing too cringe-worthy.**

**Happy New Year again to everybody! I love you guys. Don't forget to review, yeah?**

**Love,**

**Radiance Within**


	4. Chapter 4: 2nd Place

**Summary: **Renji Yanagi found a beautiful piece of literature lying about the school library and was quite certain that it was purely student-made. He does not recognize the handwriting of the person while Ranawa Ikeda searches tirelessly for that creative writing piece she had to finish. Are the fates toying the feelings of the two most logical students in Rikkaidai Fuzoku Chuu?

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Prince of Tennis characters.

* * *

Ranawa blinked. A millisecond passed when she realized she had not yet responded. "Thank you...?" She slowly answered, the uncertainty obvious in her tone.

She saw an eyebrow slowly raise and Yanagi Renji turned towards her. "It was a mere observation."

"Of course it was." Ranawa responded quickly. The silence was rubbing down on her, and she felt some tension (possibly imaginary?) rise between the both of them. "Well, it was pleasure speaking with you, Yanagi-san." She stood up, and gathered her things as Yanagi sat there, completely motionless.

Ranawa tried not to make so much noise, since the atmosphere seemed so solemn (and a tad bit awkward, but that could be easily disregarded) and briskly walked down the stairs, but not before giving Yanagi Renji one last weak wave. One that she doubted would make such a lasting impression.

She coolly made her way into her respective classroom, ignoring the gradual feeling of heat creeping it's way up towards her cheeks. Ranawa made sure not to cause a clamor as she dropped her bag softly near the edge of her chair, and plopped herself down onto her seat. She suddenly felt the strong stare of a certain blue-eyed girl and stared back at Tanaka who seemed to have been studying her intently.

"Your face is red." The dark-haired Ice Princess commented bluntly, pointing her pencil towards the said body part.

Ranawa brushed the remark off. "I was rushing from the rooftop down to here."

"There was plenty of time to leisurely walk between up there to here." Tanaka raised a curious eyebrow.

Ranawa gave her friend an exasperated look. "Honestly, Tanaka. What's the point of interrogating me?"

"Nothing. You just seemed flustered, is all." The bright blue-eyed teen turned her attention back towards her notebook, as Ranawa scoffed and turned away. "Flustered..." Ranawa mumbled under her breath, as she began taking out of her own notebook. Yanagi Renji was no reason to be flustered, and Ranawa knew that. He is, after all, her sole rival. The one whom she's always wanted to beat. Nothing and no one else.

* * *

"So, Ranawa - I was wondering, when are you going to take up a sport?" Naomi Hayashi, her always-optimistic fellow 3rd year, wondered as they walked slowly home from school. The topic soon caught the attention of the seemingly-solemn Shoko Tokiwa, who had been busily shoving her ankle brace inside her gigantic sports bag. Shoko was a renowned athlete, but her grades couldn't keep up with the many sports she had been involved in, so she had to drop most of them.

Ranawa sighed as she stretched her arms out. "School's already keeping me busy. And of course, the volunteer work that we do. I don't think I have time."

"Well, it's good to have your grades as a priority but doing a sport can be a lot of fun." Naomi told her, her caramel-colored hair glistening unnaturally under the bright glare of the sun.

Ranawa rolled her eyes. "You're only saying that because you're good at the sport you play. In case you guys haven't noticed yet, I'm not exactly an athletic kind of person."

"Didn't you used to play tennis?" Aeha inquired innocently, but as she batted her eyelashes sweetly at the already-peeved 3rd year. Ranawa knew the girl's remark was deeply rooted from Tanaka's curious ears and Shoko's blabbering mouth.

Ranawa glared at Shoko, who merely responded with a blank stare. "Have you been telling everybody everything?"

"They were curious." Shoko stood unyielding to Ranawa's piercing narrow slits, as she shrugged and gave her a devil-may-care look.

Naomi smirked and mused. "You know you're majorly crushing on a guy when you'd take up a sport just so that you can play him..."

Ranawa rolled her eyes and scoffed. "Alright. Let's get this straight. I've not shown as much as an ounce of romantic interest in Yanagi Renji since the 1st grade. The only relationship we share is apparently a two-sided rivalry, and nothing more. Have I made myself clear?"

"Whatever, Nawa."

"K."

"Sure~"

Cue the rolling of eyes. And when Ranawa thought she finally found herself a mature group of teenage friends, they just had to prove her wrong.

* * *

**Kanagawa's Annual Book Fair! Recently released books to be sold with a 30-60% discount!**

Ranawa clutched the brightly colored piece of paper and stared at it curiously.

"Thought I should remind you." Her mother said, a few footsteps away from her in the hallway.

Ranawa smiled. "Thanks, okaa-san. I almost forgot."

"You seemed be a bit disgruntled these past few days. Everything alright, Nawa?" The sudden worry in her mother's voice startled Ranawa. It's been days since they've had a proper mother-to-daughter conversation, and Ranawa's family has always been a bit detached from each other. Her father was barely home half the time, her brother showed no family interest, her sister was always busy, and her mother had been a bit aloof for weeks now.

She bit back the small urge to ask if her mother ate something funny and shook her head. "Everything's fine. Thank you for this." Ranawa held up the advertisement as she inclined her head and slowly walked to her room. Maybe it was just her imagination, but she felt as if her mother's eyes never left her back as she turned the hallway corner and into the stuffy warmth of her room.

Changing out of her uniform and into a comfortable attire, she stepped out into the hallway and into the living room where her mother sat alone in front of the tv, a blank look occupying her features as she watched a documentary on panda bears.

"Okaa-san, everything alright?" Ranawa echoed her own mother's words, concern written across her face.

Her mother seemed to shake out of the blank spell she had been and smiled a close-mouthed smile. "Of course. Go on to the fair, Ranawa. And make sure to be home by dinner."

"Nobody else is home yet?" Ranawa wondered, looking around. The house was eerily quiet without the booming of her brother's bass, or her sister's loud chattering.

Her mother shook her head. "No, but I'll be fine. Go on ahead."

Ranawa sighed, and crossed her arms before seating herself down next to her stubborn mother. "Okaa-san, what is it? I'm not an idiot. I know something's bothering you."

"Your grandfather died."

Time seemed to stand still. From the chill that emanated from her mother's words, Ranawa knew it couldn't possibly her father's father. That meant it had to be the jackass who decided to leave her grandmother when she was 8 months pregnant with Ranawa's mother. He hadn't kept in contact with them ever since he left, and Ranawa knew her mother had never been fond of her absent father.

"How?" Ranawa asked uncertainly.

Her mother gave a sad smirk. "I don't know. The woman he eloped with had her eldest daughter call me this morning. Didn't say the cause, didn't say exactly when. Just said he was gone."

"And you care?" Ranawa regretted saying those words as soon as it left her mouth. Her mother stared at her with a hurt look which instantly turned into a silent rage only she could conjure.

Her mother shook her head. "No matter, he was still my father. No matter how much he didn't want me, or loved me, or even considered me his daughter, I still am. It hurts, Nawa. Knowing that your own father don't give a damn even about how you are now, or what you've grown up to be." There were no tears that poured down her stiff mother's face, but Ranawa knew that inside her mother was crying.

For an instant, Ranawa pondered about just how privileged she was to at least have a father in her life. To have a complete family. It was privilege other children didn't have, and here she was complaining about losing a piece of writing. She patted her mother reluctantly on the back and said, "If you want me to stay here until somebody else gets here..."

She was cut off. "No. You shouldn't burdened with my problems. Just know that even though your father is barely around, he truly does care for you and love you, alright?"

"I know." Ranawa smiled, wondering if that was a half-assed truth. She hasn't had a decent conversation with her father for weeks; he was always gone every time she was home.

Her mother echoed her smile, only in a more solemn manner. "Well, go ahead and hurry. I saw kids passing by already while you were upstairs. I know you don't like crowded places, so you should get there before they do."

Ranawa nodded as she reluctantly made her way outside, and crossed her arms. Then, she quickly stuck her head back in and said, "Okaa-san?"

She saw her mother's head turn from a few yards away.

"You know that I'm always here for you, right?" Ranawa asked.

Her mother smiled and nodded. "I know, Nawa-chan. I do."

Ranawa nodded before heading back out again.

The annual book fair always took place in her favorite bookstore, so Ranawa knew the route well. She had thought that she had been early enough to at least get a couple of decent books at a favorable price but the place was already crowded by the time she entered through.

Amazed at how many people decided to show up this year, she barely had time to look at the direction where she was going and landed her face right into the back of Rikkaidai's one and only Sanada Genichirou. The intensity of his glare was enough to make her pee her pants but she quickly avoided his gaze and stared at the ground, faking a respectful incline of the head.

"Sorry, Sanada-san. Didn't mean to run into you." She rolled her eyes as he gave her a typical stone-cold Sanada response.

"Ikeda-san, is something the matter?" A familiar voice made her sharply looked up and she stared back at Yanagi Renji's slightly irritating close-eyed stare.

Ranawa backed up and smiled. "No, nothing at all." She quickly turned tail and wandered into a less crowded spot. Now she knew why it was so damn stuffy. The fangirls must have followed their beloved regulars' to the store.

"Ranawa, there you are!" For once, Ranawa was pleased to hear a familiar tone and surprisingly met the hazel eyes of a bun-headed Konomi Ritsu being tagged along by a cheerful Kiseki Shimizu.

"Kiseki, Konomi. Didn't see you guys this afternoon." Ranawa told them, relieved that she finally found companions to wander with.

Konomi opened her mouth to respond, but Kiseki had already beaten her. "I had to walk my sister to the dance academy. Hey, did you know Konomi trains and works there as a mentor?" She excitedly asked.

"No, Kiseki. Because I haven't known her and gone to the same schools as her since what, kindergarten?" Ranawa rolled her eyes and tried to sound less hostile and more playful.

Kiseki scowled. "You know, sometimes your sarcasm really bites."

"Aw, boo-hoo. Cry me a river." Ranawa cooed, chuckling as Kiseki smacked her with a nearby book on the shoulder.

Kiseki rolled her own eyes and muttered. "You've been hanging Tanaka and Shoko waay too much."

"Tanaka-chan isn't as venomous." Konomi murmured, catching the attention of both the bantering girls in front of her. It took a moment for the sentence to sink in before Ranawa realized what the timid-looking girl had meant.

Kiseki held back a howl of laughter as she pointed the book she was holding towards Ranawa's peeved face. "She just called you extra-hostile."

"Funny, both of you, really." Ranawa slapped Kiseki's book aside as she made her way towards the fiction section of the store. "Now, rudeness aside, have you realized how many fangirls are here?" She gestured towards a girl fully clothed in Rikkaidai attire slowly making their way towards an unsuspecting Yagyuu Hiroshi accompanied by a bored-looking Niou Masaharu.

"You know how they are. They never miss a chance to stalk." Kiseki said so in a matter-of-fact tone and turned around a shelf, following a completely random path.

Ranawa sighed. "And seeing how both of you are practically the ones they've been preying on these past few months...I should probably...go..." She faked a face, as if she has no other choice but to do so.

"Wow, ouch. I thought we already pulled rudeness aside." Kiseki responded, shaking her head in disbelief. Ranawa returned the gesture with a playful grin when she suddenly realized Konomi had been eyeing her for the past few moments.

"You know, Ranawa-san, this is probably the first time I've seen you so carefree." Konomi informed the dark-haired teen who had been busying herself raising an interrogatory eyebrow at the shorter brunette.

"Yeah, what gives? You were pretty flustered during lunch too." Kiseki remembered, crossing her arms at Ranawa.

Ranawa shrugged. "Don't know. Early symptoms of Mother Nature's monthly gifts, perhaps?" She gave them a goofy lopsided grin.

"And we all know you don't want to talk about something when you have resort to using your lame sense of humor. I'll drop the subject." Kiseki quickly replied, cringing but Konomi seemed ever-curious. When Ranawa caught her eye, she saw concern flecked in the shorter brunette's bright orbs.

They rounded a corner when suddenly a mob of girls separated the trio from each other and when the crowd had cleared, Ranawa found herself standing stupidly alone near the "Preganancy" aisle. Awkwardly shuffling away, Ranawa turned her heads here and there to try and find any signs of Kiseki and Konomi but they seemed to have been swept away by the overly excited mob of girls from before.

Sighing, Ranawa randomly pried a book from a shelf and found herself meeting the amber eyes of Yanagi Renji on the other side.

"Ikeda-san. Fancy seeing you here." The dry slightly-sarcastic tone of his voice made Ranawa raise an eyebrow as she looked up to see the section she was in. **Literature History.** She fought the urge not to crack a grin. Literature History was the subject she had almost best Yanagi Renji at, just 3% away from beating him.

"I've been running into you a lot lately. It's pretty funny." Ranawa murmured, as he rounded the corner to go into her aisle. Maybe it was an instinct for him to talk to people face to face, just not eye-to-eye.

"I fail to see the humor." His voice was flat, but an edge of possible playfulness made Ranawa take back the slightly hostile response that had been itching to come out the tip of her tongue.

Ranawa raised an eyebrow. "Never pegged you for the bantering type." She mused, playing with the spine of the book she had taken.

"I'm sorry for walking in on you at the rooftop." Yanagi told her, ignoring her last comment. Ranawa wondered if she had offended him, but quickly disregarded it.

Ranawa shrugged. "It's fine. Interrupting me wouldn't make the new piece worse."

"You still want the old one back, don't you?" Yanagi asked her, crossing his arms.

Ranawa smirked. "I'd ask you to make a percentage prediction and prove you wrong, but that would be going too far, wouldn't it?"

"I'm supposing you are decently happy with this new one, but you'd still like to turn in the old one instead. Am I right?" Ranawa realized he had pointedly made a prediction, just not a percentage one and she studied his face - trying to find a hint of smugness or a smirk, but could find none. Is this boy even human?

Ranawa raised an eyebrow. "Where are you going with this?"

"I want to help you find your missing piece. I feel like I at least owe you my assistance." Yanagi replied in a robotic tone, as if he had practiced his response a thousand times.

Ranawa sighed. "If you're doing this out of guilt, I don't want to be bother you. Granted, you are the only person who can help me and I do want my old piece back in my hands, but I can find it myself. Thank you." She felt her pride being bruised. Did Yanagi believe she wasn't capable of finding it herself? Did he pride himself with his calculative mindset so much that he believes he is the only one who could find it?

"Ikeda-san, I didn't mean to offend you. It was partly my fault it is currently lost, but I'm not offering to assist you out of guilt. It's obvious how much it means to you. I've no other reason to find it but to safely bring it back into your hands. Nothing else." Yanagi responded as Ranawa studied him carefully.

Yanagi Renji, the Data Master, was asking to do something out of compassion? She thought he was an emotionless rock!

"Then, thank you." Ranawa inclined her head before walking away from him.

"Oh, and Ranawa." The fact that he had called her by her first name made her freeze. "It is an instinct for me not to open my eyes, it's become a habit so don't find it insulting when my eyes do not meet yours. I do banter, just not casually. You did not offend me by asking so, I was just curious as to how you would react if I ignored your remark. I'd know if you were to say my prediction is wrong and I didn't want to waste my time saying so. Yes, I am human. I do believe you are capable of finding your piece yourself, but I wanted you to consider my offer. And yes, habitually I do try to do something out of compassion. It must be my being a human."

Ranawa realized that he had just answered every question she had been asking in her mind. Shaking her head in both disbelief and amusement, she walked away knowing full well he was intently watching her from behind.

* * *

"If Sanada finds out that you've been busying yourself with something other than desiring to win for Yukimura's sake, I'm betting a 100 slaps at least." Niou said, appearing behind Yanagi and following his gaze towards a departing Ranawa.

Yanagi raised an eyebrow. "Sanada, no matter how much of an authoritative figure I see him as, has no control over what I personally choose to do in my free time."

"Since when have you taken an interest in Ikeda?" Niou gestured towards the disappearing girl who had just rounded off a corner.

Yanagi pursed his lips. "You already know that it was partly my fault that her piece is currently lost. This is merely my form of repayment."

"No use trying to fool the trickster, Yanagi. When did you ever take the time to even converse with the opposite sex, let alone assist them? I know you're no Yagyuu. What's the real reason you want to help Ikeda, huh, Yanagi?" Niou pressed, eyebrows raised.

Yanagi sighed before responding, "I won't waste time arguing with you, Niou. Just know that not all of us are as girl-crazy as you and Marui."

"Heh, nice comeback, Mr. Dataman." Niou smirked, as he stood straight and looked Yanagi straight in the face. "After all, it takes one to know one." He walked away, with Yanagi exasperatedly irritated behind him.

Yanagi has known Ranawa Ikeda since the 1st grade, when he first moved to Kanagawa and many of the girls flounced over to him. Ranawa, included. But she was pointedly different; a lot less chirpy and a lot more good-natured. A lot less mindless and a lot more ambitious. Of course, that explained why she was such a recurring name. The girl who always came 2nd to Yanagi Renji. All of the attention always came to him, and never to her because no one else really bothered to consistently congratulate those who came under 1st place.

Her one-sided rivalry became apparent to him in 3rd grade when she had challenged him to a match; back then, she was much more impulsive and less reserved. Because she was an obvious rookie and he was obviously experienced, he murdered her 6-0. Not once did she ever call him out again.

During the final years of primary school, their fellow classmates knew she harbored an intense desire to best him at one thing, at least. But as they progressed onto middle school, she became a lot more solemn and pointedly detached. Ever since then, he'd never really recalled her tediously busying herself over beating him again.

Yanagi Renji became a legend among the students, along with Sanada and Yukimura during their freshman year. And Ranawa Ikeda disappeared in the shadows along with her best friend Shoko Tokiwa who had once been a renowned athlete who could have made it as a regular in the girl's tennis team. Yet, her name consistently stood under his after every exam. Always.

Yanagi wanted to confirm if their rivalry still existed, if he could still ignite a competitive drive in Ranawa. And sure enough, he was right. And despite knowing in the pit of his heart that he could never admit this to anyone but himself, the girl who always came 2nd intrigued him. And although he's known her for years, he's never really _known _her.

And now, here was his chance to. And as irrational as it might be, Yanagi couldn't help but take it.

* * *

**Hey guys! So...it's summertime!(: Which also means updating time for me. I was completely busy throughout the school year, but now I'm really driven to make updates for you guys. Thank you for waiting this long. I know some of you might have to re-read the story which is completely understandable. I'm really sorry for not updating as much as I should be. **

**Anyways...this is officially the start of updating time, so be on the lookout for other updates! Thank you for reading! Don't forget to review as well(:**

**Love always,**

**Radiance Within**


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